Hetkessä

Finland is a country of many outstanding accordionists and Teija Niku is one of the newer figures on the scene. This is her first album totally solo, where she plays both Nordic and Balkan styles, which of course brings a welcome variety of sounds. So too does her beautiful-sounding accordion, and on several tracks she explores its particular registers. The opening ‘Hetki’ is like a melancholic meditation that highlights what she calls the instrument's ‘bassoon register.’ ‘Kotva’ is a delicate tune in a Macedonian-style 7/8 rhythm, followed by the racy 5/8 of ‘Salakavala’, which is made more lively by the sound of fingers on keys and the mechanism of the instrument. She adds her voice, too, on a couple of tracks. ‘Peshekee’, named after an American river, is a tango inspired by Astor Piazzolla and Finnish tango composer Unto Mononen.

The final piece, ‘Pohjatuuli’, is dark and introverted and again explores the instrument's mechanical sounds, beginning with what sound like deep breaths or distant sea waves. In short, Hetkessä seems like a very personal journey into Teija Niku's inner world. It's also beautifully recorded.